India, Oct. 27 -- Preliminary trends in the counting of votes for five Maharashtra Legislative Council seats showed the ruling Mahayuti alliance leading in three constituencies, while the opposition Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi (MVA) was ahead in two. With several prominent candidates in the fray, including rebels from both alliances, preferential votes were expected to play a crucial role, delaying the final results until after midnight on Tuesday.

The Mahayuti was leading in the Pune and Amravati Teachers' constituencies and the Nagpur Graduates' constituency. The MVA was ahead in the Pune and Aurangabad Graduates' constituencies.

In the Pune Teachers' constituency, BJP candidate Kaustubh Gawade was leading, followed by Shiv Sena-backed c...